Request Instruction Session

Librarians can come to your class to teach a wide variety of information skills and concepts. Fill out the form below and a librarian will be in touch to talk with you in detail about your course and to schedule the instruction session. When planning, please keep in mind that we generally advise covering a maximum of three concepts per fifty-minute session, and some of these concepts can easily expand to fill the full session.

Choose the topics you’d like us to cover below. You can mix-and-match from any category.

Getting Started

Creating a Research Plan

Student will create a plan for finding sources, identifying sources of help, use recursive searching techniques, and develop strategies for logging and retrieving information.

Developing and Refining a Topic

Student will learn to define the topic and information needed, refine a proto-thesis or preliminary opinion on the topic, and develop a manageable focus appropriate to criteria of the assignment.

Basic Library Skills

How the Library Can Help and What We Can Do

Student will be able to identify various sources of help with research (e.g. library and classroom faculty, library staff, peers, library guides, etc.).

Locating and Requesting Information at GVSU

Student will identify various sources of help with research and learn to seek information beyond course materials as neccessary.

Student will understand the financial forces driving the availability of information, be able to recognize information overload, and develop strategies to manage information anxiety.

All About Sources

Understanding the Information Life Cycle

Student will develop and awareness of the publication life cycle and recognize the financial forces driving the availability of information.

Types of Publications

Student will be able to differentiate among scholarly, popular, and trade sources.

Evaluating Web Sources

Student will be able to evaluate resources for authority, accuracy, reliability, relevance, coverage, and timeliness, as well as identify possible biases with information sources.

Open Access

Student will Recognize the financial forces driving the availability of information.

Peer-review and Publication Credibility

Student will be able to define peer-review and evaluate resources for authority, accuracy, reliability, coverage, and timeliness.

Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Student will be able to identify a breadth of primary and secondary sources of information in the field (e.g. scholarly journals, trade publications, books, government information, web-based resources, subject experts, etc.).

Discovery

Using Summon

Student will learn to search GVSU’s Summon search interface to find articles, books, and more throughout the University Libraries’ collections.

Finding Articles in Databases

Student will learn how to effectively find articles within the University Libraries’s subject-specific databases.

Google Scholar and Google Books

Student will understand how to effectively use Google Scholar and Google Books to find research articles and books.

Finding and Searching News

Student will learn how to find current and historical news articles relevant to class assignments.

Finding and Using Books and eBooks

Student will learn how to find physical and electronic books in the University Libraries’ collections.